As the Netflix drama "The Wrath of Teachers" draws attention, Ahn Min-seok, the education superintendent-elect of Gyeonggi Province, has proposed a public debate on whether to establish a "Teacher Rights Protection Bureau" within the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education.
In a social media post on the 12th, Ahn said, "I watched all 10 episodes of Netflix's 'The Wrath of Teachers.'" He added, "Because the drama was based on a webtoon, the violent and exaggerated aspects were uncomfortable, but I take seriously the reality that schools' functions have collapsed."
He stressed, "There must be a clear reason why so many parents are watching 'The Wrath of Teachers,'" adding, "This is a time when restoring trust within the school community is more important than anything else."
Ahn also referred to the fact that the Democratic Policy Institute, the think tank of the Democratic Party of Korea, had raised the need to establish an organization under the Ministry of Education to oversee cases of infringement on educational activities, similar to the fictional "Teacher Rights Protection Bureau" in "The Wrath of Teachers."
"Because restoring teacher rights is an urgent task, I look forward to a decision from the Ministry of Education," he said. "In addition, as the education superintendent-elect of Gyeonggi Province, I propose a public debate on whether to establish a 'Teacher Rights Protection Bureau' at the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education."
He added, "A 'Gyeonggi-style Teacher Rights Protection Bureau' aims to restore the school community and create 'a school where students are excited to come, teachers are respected, and parents feel at ease,'" adding, "I will await opinions for and against."
Based on a Naver webtoon, "The Wrath of Teachers" rose to No. 1 in global viewing rankings immediately after its release, drawing significant attention.
In the work, the Teacher Rights Protection Bureau appears as an organization that resolves various problems arising in schools. Its supervisors directly investigate and discipline students who engage in school violence, teachers who leak exam papers, and parents who harass teachers.
Among viewers, there have been responses of catharsis, along with voices of concern about the setting in which supervisors use corporal punishment.
In its recently released report "Plan to Establish a Bureau for the Protection of Educational Activities under the Ministry of Education," the Democratic Policy Institute assessed that "the popularity of the drama 'The Wrath of Teachers' can be seen as a case in which popular culture captured the anxiety in schools first."
The report pointed out that "infringement on teacher rights goes beyond individual teachers' harm, leading to reduced class management, avoidance of student guidance, fewer field trips, and complaint-averse school operations, ultimately weakening students' right to learn and trust in public education."
However, the Democratic Policy Institute emphasized that what is needed is not the punishment-style organization in the drama but a state-responsible control tower in the form of a "Bureau for the Protection of Educational Activities." As core functions, it proposed establishing an integrated classification system for cases of infringement on educational activities, a system holding institutions accountable for malicious complaints, support for responding to child abuse reports, and support for restoring the school community.
Lee Kyung-ah, the research fellow (Ph.D. in education policy) who wrote the report, said, "There is a need to minimize the structure in which teachers become the direct counterpart of malicious complaints." She added, "Parent complaints should be received and managed through the school's official complaint channel, and matters that suppress educational activities—such as repeated complaints, abusive or threatening complaints, and the spread of false information—should be transferred to the education office so that legal review and an official response can take place."
